Written questions by Bishop.

Innovation and Technology, what consideration she has given to repurposing social media algorithms whereby feeds recommend high-quality, age-appropriate content from a diverse range of trusted sources for child accounts.

Under the Online Safety Act, services that are likely to be accessed by children must prevent children from encountering the most harmful content and provide age-appropriate experiences. Ofcom has recommended measures to comply with the Act, including ensuring algorithms filter out content that is harmful.On 2 March, the government launched a consultation on further measures to ensure children’s experiences online are safe and enriching. This consultation seeks views on whether specific functionalities, like algorithms, should be age-restricted, the benefits of positive online content for children, and how cross‑sector and voluntary efforts could enable access to it. The government will respond by Summer.

What assessment she has made of (a) trends in the level of child morning hunger across early years, primary and secondary school settings and (b) the potential impact of child morning hunger on school readiness and attendance in the Forest of Dean constituency.

The government is committed to tackling child poverty and delivering meaningful action to support children and families. We recognise the importance of a healthy breakfast at the start of the day for pupils and the impact this can have on attendance and readiness to learn. This is why we are rolling out free breakfast clubs in every state-funded school with primary-aged pupils in England, so all children, regardless of background, can have the best start in life.School leaders report that free breakfast clubs are improving punctuality, attendance, behaviour and concentration. Since April 2025, the programme has delivered seven million meals and offered places to almost 180,000 pupils across the country, with two of our early adopter schools located in the Forest of Dean constituency.We are investing a further £80 million to fund approximately 2,000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027. We have also committed to continued funding of breakfast provision from September 2026 for secondary schools in disadvantaged areas which are currently participating in the National School Breakfast Programme.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking to improve consular support for British nationals overseas.

Providing consular support is a vital public service, with more than 20,000 British people given tailored assistance each year.We are continually investing in improvements, including integration of AI to improve efficiency, alongside staff training and crisis exercising to give a better service.We are determined to reassure families that their voices are heard, which is why Ministers have held well over 20 meetings with the families of Brits detained abroad, and continually raise their cases with foreign governments at the highest levels.In the last full financial year, the FCDO answered over 400,000 requests for consular support from British nationals overseas, and provided more tailored assistance in over 22,000 cases, including support for the families of more than 6,000 British nationals who had died overseas, and 3,500 who had been hospitalised.

Food and Rural Affairs, what action is being taken to address ongoing illegal tipping a) across the country, and b) in the Forest of Dean constituency.

This Government is committed to tackling waste crime from the fly-tippers who blight our towns and villages to the serious and organised crime groups who are exploiting the waste sector. Defra is making policy and regulatory reforms to close loopholes exploited by criminals and have increased the Environment Agency’s (EA’s) budget for waste crime enforcement by over 50% this year to £15.6 million. The EA focuses on tackling large-scale waste crime, often linked to organised criminal activity while fly-tipping is managed by local authorities. The EA is tackling waste crime across the West Midlands region, including the Forest of Dean. All reports are taken seriously, investigating each one and determining the most appropriate intervention, based on the level of risk to communities and the environment. EA Officers use a wide range of prevention and disruption techniques and are not hesitating to use these and to take enforcement action where necessary on any illegal waste sites in the Forest of Dean. Defra also works with a wide range of interested parties through the National Fly-Tipping Prevention Group (NFTPG) to promote good practice, including advice on preventing fly-tipping on private land.

Innovation and Technology, what assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of making UK AISI / Thorn's guidance entitled Recommended Practice for AI-G CSEA Prevention, published in December 2025, mandatory for AI developers to prevent the creation of AI-generated child sexual abuse material.

The Government recognises the importance of tackling AI-generated CSAM. Creating, possessing, or distributing CSAM, including AI Generated CSAM, is illegal. The Online Safety Act requires services to proactively identify and remove this content. We are taking further action in the Crime and Policing Bill to criminalise CSAM image generators, and to ensure AI developers can directly test for and address vulnerabilities in their models which enable the production of CSAM.The AISI / Thorn joint publication guidance (Recommended Practice for AI-G CSEA Prevention) sets out practical steps that AI developers, model hosting services and others in the AI ecosystem can take to reduce the risk that their systems are misused to generate CSAM. This guidance is informed by input from industry and child protection organisations, and many of the world’s leading AI developers (including OpenAI, Anthropic, Google and Meta) have signed up to the principles of earlier forms of this guidance. The Government is clear: no option is off the table when it comes to protecting the online safety of users in the UK.

What steps his Department is taking to ensure specialist emotional and practical support is available for parents caring for children with life-limiting and life-threatening conditions.

We recognise the challenges families caring for a seriously ill child face, which is why NHS England have published statutory guidance and service specifications on commissioning children’s palliative care and end of life care. This specifically references access to emotional support and practical advice for parents and loved ones. Local authorities and ICBs jointly commission short‑breaks packages for children with life‑limiting conditions, and provide respite care where necessary. Additionally, from April 2025, the Carer’s Allowance earnings limit increased from £151 a week to £196 to support carers. The Minister for Care also chairs a cross-government meeting with DWP, DBT and DfE ministers to consider how we can provide carers with better recognition and support.

Whether her Department plans to review the eligibility criteria for pupil premium funding so that all children from families receiving Universal Credit are entitled to support.

This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity so that all our children have the freedom to achieve and thrive in education. We are providing over £3 billion of pupil premium funding in financial year 2025/26 to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils in state-funded schools in England. Pupil premium is allocated on the basis of economic disadvantage, using free school meals claims, and to support children looked after or previously looked after by their local authority Pupil premium will continue to be allocated using the current free school meals threshold of £7,400 for financial year 2026/27. Over the longer term, we are reviewing how we allocate pupil premium and related funding to schools and local authorities to ensure it is targeted to those who need it most, while maintaining the overall amount we spend on these funding streams.

What steps her Department is taking to help ensure that schools and teachers are well supported to deliver effective media and digital literacy education in the new curriculum.

Following the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review’s final report on 5 November, the department will update the national curriculum to prepare young people for life and work in a changing world, including media and digital literacy. Content will be shaped through expert engagement, with a public consultation on draft proposals next year.To support schools and teachers, we will provide high quality, free digital resources through Oak National Academy (Oak) and curriculum support through our National Centre for Computing Education (NCCE). Oak will help schools to understand and implement changes, reducing teacher workload.Currently, media literacy is taught through citizenship, relationships, sex and health education (RSHE) and computing, whilst digital literacy is addressed in computing and RSHE. To support teachers now, Oak provides adaptable resources for computing and citizenship, the Educate Against Hate website offers media literacy materials to counter extremist narratives and the NCCE delivers free courses on digital literacy and artificial intelligence.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of reducing the lower threshold of the Soft Drinks Industry Levy on (a) business investment decisions in the food and drink manufacturing sector, (b) the growth of that sector and (c) (i) investment and (ii) growth by food and drink manufacturing companies in the South West.

The proposed changes to the Soft Drinks Industry Levy were subject to the ‘Strengthening the Soft Drinks Industry Levy’ consultation, which was open from 28 April to 21 July 2025. An assessment of economic and other impacts is included as part of this consultation document. This is available athttps://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/strengthening-the-soft-drinks-industry-levy. The Government is considering the consultation responses, including those providing evidence of the potential impacts on growth and investment, prior to making a decision at Budget. If the Government decides to make changes to the levy, it will publish an updated assessment of the confirmed policy’s impacts.

What assessment her Department has made of the potential merits of including (a) clear and (b) deliverable objectives to combat child (i) sexual abuse and (ii) exploitation in the updated Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy.

This Government recognises the devastating impact of child sexual abuse and exploitation and is committed to tackling these crimes.The new VAWG Strategy will set the direction for the next decade, driving forward the Government’s bold ambition to halve VAWG within ten years. This is a landmark commitment that demands a truly transformational approach. It’s vital we get it right. We’re working towards publication of the Strategy as soon as possible and I will continue to keep the House updated on its development and forthcoming publication.Tackling child sexual abuse and exploitation will be clearly reflected in the VAWG Strategy. But we also recognise that tackling these horrendous crimes requires a targeted and child-centred approach. Which is why we are taking forward an ambitious programme of work across Government, including through our response to the Casey Audit and IICSA recommendations.

What support is available to GP practices operating from newly built premises that subsequently experience (a) building and (b) maintenance problems not identified at the (i) planning and (ii) construction stage.

The provision and maintenance of premises are typically the responsibility of general practice (GP) partners, who are either owner-occupiers or tenants of their surgery buildings. This includes addressing any building or maintenance issues identified after the planning and construction phases. The National Health Service reimburses partners for the recurring costs of operating in the property, for instance rent, notional rent, or mortgage costs, and funds services in the GP Contract.GP owner-occupiers are responsible for all maintenance and repair of their property. For GPs that rent their premises, their lease agreement sets out who is responsible for maintenance. A Full Repairing and Insuring lease requires the practice to handle all repairs, while a Tenant's Internal Repairing lease means the landlord covers external and structural issues.Commissioners may award improvement grants to GPs to fund extensions, improvements, and enhanced physical access. This can be up to 100% of a project’s value, subject to discretion and the integrated care boards available budget, under provisions of the NHS (General Medical Services) Premises Costs Directions 2024.The £102 million Primary Care Utilisation and Modernisation Fund, announced at the 2024 Autumn Budget, is upgrading more than a thousand GP surgeries across England by April 2026.Where facilities are an issue, it is imperative that GPs work with the local commissioner. There may be capital or revenue solutions to GP premises and facilities’ needs.

What steps she is taking to help ensure that pupil premium funding effectively supports the children it is provided for.

The pupil premium is additional funding to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils in state-funded schools in England.This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity so that all children have the freedom to achieve and thrive in education. Pupil premium supports the aim of narrowing the gap between the attainment of disadvantaged pupils and their peers. This will help to break the link between children’s outcomes and those of their parents.We are providing over £3 billion of pupil premium funding in the 2025/26 financial year. Schools must use pupil premium funding to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils, and the approaches they use should be informed by evidence.We want to support all schools to use the wealth of evidence of what works, evaluated by the Education Endowment Foundation, to use pupil premium funding effectively to drive high and rising standards for disadvantaged pupils.Schools must spend their pupil premium in line with the department’s 'menu of approaches' which is informed by evidence of how best to improve disadvantaged pupils’ attainment.We are reviewing how we allocate pupil premium funding in the longer term, while maintaining the overall amount we spend on tackling the challenges faced by children with additional needs. We will provide more information in due course.

What support his Department has provided to GP practices operating from newly built premises with (a) building and (b) maintenance issues; and what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of that support in helping to resolve those issues with landlords.

The provision and maintenance of premises is typically the responsibility of GP partners, who are either owner-occupiers or tenants of their surgery buildings. The National Health Service reimburses partners for the recurring costs of operating in the property (rent, notional rent or mortgage cost) and funds services in the GP contract.GP owner-occupiers are responsible for all maintenance and repair of their property. For GP practices that rent their premises, their lease agreement sets out who is responsible for maintenance. A ‘Full Repairing and Insuring’ (FRI) lease requires the practice to handle all repairs, while a ‘Tenant’s Internal Repairing’ (TIR) lease means the landlord covers external and structural issues.Commissioners may award improvement grants to GP practices to fund extensions, improvements, and enhanced physical access. This can be up to 100% of a project’s value, subject to discretion and the integrated care board’s available budget, under provisions of the NHS (General Medical Services) Premises Costs Directions 2024.The £102 million Primary Care Utilisation & Modernisation Fund, announced at Autumn Budget 2024, is upgrading more than a thousand GP surgeries across England by April 2026.Where facilities are an issue, it is imperative that General Practices work with the local Commissioner. There may be capital or revenue solutions to general practice premises and facilities’ needs.

What regulatory oversight is in place to ensure (a) (i) accurate and (ii) secure delivery in rural locations and (b) other basic standards of service by delivery companies.

Ofcom is the independent regulator for the postal sector with the responsibility and powers to regulate postal services.The ‘Mail Integrity Objectives’, set out in Ofcom’s Essential Condition 1, seek to minimise the potential for postal packets to be subject to loss, theft, damage or interference. Currently this Essential Condition is effectively restricted to Royal Mail’s services delivered under its universal postal service obligation.Ofcom engages regularly with all parcel operators to understand their approach to implementation of, and compliance with, its consumer protection measures.

What progress his Department has made on bringing forward legislative proposals to amend the Coal Industry Act 1994 to prohibit new coal extraction licences; and if he will ensure that those legislative proposals protect the rights of freeminers in the Forest of Dean.

On 14 November 2024 we announced that we will introduce new legislation as soon as possible to restrict the future licensing of new coal mines. Under our plans, the historic rights of Freeminers in the Forest of Dean will be exempted and can continue.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the HGV weight restriction on the M48 Severn Bridge on (a) haulers, (b) congestion and (c) businesses in (i) Forest of Dean constituency and (ii) surrounding areas; and what steps her Department is taking to (A) identify and (b) implement a solution to the weight restriction.

The weight restriction on the M48 Severn Bridge was introduced by National Highways as a safety measure following the identification of deterioration in the bridge’s main suspension cables. To keep the bridge open to the majority of traffic, vehicles over 7.5 tonnes, have been temporarily restricted. National Highways carried out traffic modelling to understand potential impacts, including on hauliers, congestion and rerouting in areas such as the Forest of Dean and nearby junctions. The decision to impose a weight restriction followed a review of alternative options and was considered the most effective way to address safety concerns while limiting disruption.National Highways has engaged with local authorities, industry bodies and operators to keep them informed. A dedicated team is progressing work on a medium-term traffic management solution, which is currently in the feasibility stage. The restriction is expected to remain in place for 12 to 18 months subject to further investigations, with updates provided to stakeholders as work progresses.

What steps she is taking to help tackle pay disparities for disabled people.

Tackling pay disparities for disabled people is a priority for this government.The King’s Speech announced our intention to legislate to introduce mandatory disability pay gap reporting for large employers and to make the right to equal pay effective for disabled people.Our consultation on disability pay gap reporting closed on 10 June and we are now considering over 650 responses to this.Our Call for Evidence on changes to equality law, launched in April, seeks views on making the right to equal pay effective for disabled people.

Innovation and Technology, when he plans to publish research on the impact of (a) smartphones and (b) social media on young people.

The Government is continuing to explore how the evidence base on the impact of social media on children can be improved.This is why in December 2024, DSIT commissioned a feasibility study on methods and data to understand the impact of smartphones and social media on children.The Government is currently considering the findings of the feasibility study and will publish the results in due course.

What steps his Department is taking to reduce regional disparities in the (a) treatment and (b) outcomes of patients with peripheral arterial disease.

Peripheral arterial disease (PAD), like other cardiovascular conditions, shares risk factors and is largely preventable. However, access to timely diagnosis and treatment can vary significantly across regions. NHS England is working to reduce these disparities and improve outcomes for patients.To support this, NHS England introduced the Vascular PAD Quality Improvement Framework, which was incentivised through a two-year scheme between 2022 and 2024. This framework helps ensure that patients across the country receive timely and effective interventions, such as revascularisation, by encouraging all providers to meet consistent standards of care. It aims to reduce variation in how quickly and effectively patients are treated, regardless of where they live. In addition, the National Vascular Registry (NVR) collects and publishes data on the outcomes of major vascular procedures across NHS hospitals. This includes procedures for PAD, such as angioplasty, bypass surgery, and amputations. By highlighting both good practice and areas needing improvement, the NVR supports hospitals and commissioners in identifying and addressing regional gaps in care quality and outcomes. While there is no dedicated public awareness campaign for PAD at present, information is available on the National Health Service website, and NHS England continues to work with clinical experts and professional bodies to improve care and reduce regional variation.

What steps her Department is taking to monitor the administration of CPR training in schools.

All state-funded schools in England are required to teach their pupils first aid training, which includes basic first aid and dealing with common injuries, within their statutory health education provision. In addition, pupils in secondary schools are taught further first aid, for example, how to administer CPR and the purpose of defibrillators.The department does not monitor the administration of CPR training in schools. When undertaking their first aid needs assessments, schools should consider the needs of their staff, pupils and other non-employees such as visitors, and put in place appropriate provision, including in relation to training, as recommended by the Health and Safety Executive and the department’s first-aid guidance for schools